Down By Baker Beach

Today was the day Chris and Kyle finished their bike tour. Over three months of biking. Three months of sleeping outside, and riding under the sun, and meeting new and interesting people. From Yorktown, Virginia to San Francisco--93 days and and over 4,300 miles--you guys made it! Congratulations!

Monday evening in San Francisco: Chris Mentzer and Kyle Sherman walked their bikes down to Baker Beach and touched the Pacific, that great western body of water. Jamie Morganstern was there, taking photos and bearing witness to a rare moment in time.

I wish I could have been there, but a phone call was made, and I did my celebrating on the other side of the country. Drinking some Anchor Steam would have been appropriate, but all I had were a few cans of National Bohemian. And so I drank them down and stared our my window into the Maryland night, trying to remember the magic of the California Coast and the deep-rooted goodness that is there at the end of long journey.

Little did I know that thirty one days later I'd be standing on that very same beach with Jamie Morganstern looking out over the ocean and into the West.

West --> East

From Denver to Baltimore it's 1,700 miles. At least that's what the sign on Interstate 70 says as you're leaving Baltimore. Time wise, it usually takes me right around 30 or 31 hours, that's doing the speed limit or 5 over and stopping every few hours for quick breaks.

People I know have done the trip much faster (around 24 hours), but I don't see the point. Why rush? A cross-country drive is something to savor, something to revel in. Not a chore to get through or a burden to bear. Even on the interstate there are interesting things to see.

There are good traveling opportunities happening all the time, but sometimes they are missed. I remember one silly boy who was on our flight to Spain last year. He was a college kid on a college trip and he had a loud mouth. He kept complaining about the length of the flight--which was only like 11 or 12 hours--and I just kept thinking you ungrateful little moron! You're going to Europe with your friends on an awesome airplane, and you're moving at more than half the speed of sound, and you're just sitting there complaining. Shame on you.

A little patience can go a long way when you're traveling. Many years of Greyhounding have taught me this. With the right attitude, great burdens can shrivel while the Joy Factor goes up.

How long did Debbie and I take to get from Denver to Baltimore? I don't really know. Our trip was different. We didn't even take I-70. We took I-80--that huge blue line that goes from San Fran to New York City. 80 was great. Smooth and fast. The truck stops. The cheap coffee. Greasy potato chips. I'm a vegetarian, and so is Debbie, so we planned ahead and brought some food. PB and bread. Lot of cheese subs. There's always pizza, and of course the classic road dish: Ice cream and pie. Sometimes I even like to spice up the ice cream with a little sriracha. And now some photos from the road.

Debbie bagged this photo of me in the World's Largest Truck Stop.

Exhaustion sets in.

Debbie also took this one. Olive sunrise.

Debbie and I left on Friday and pushed hard to get to Kent, Ohio in a straight shot. Got there on Saturday. Then we spent a few days in Kent visiting my sister Janice and her boyfriend Chad. Chad's taking (and teaching) art classes at Kent State University. It was great to see them both and celebrate the joys of life. Kent is a college town, and there were several good music and book stores to explore and enjoy. Thanks Jan and Chad for having us! Kent was cool.

Debbie, Chad, Janice, and me.

Debbie has a travel guitar too.

Chad at work.